1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a fishing spool, more particularly to a fishing reel rotor with a one-way brake assembly which is movable between a braking position, where a fishline is prevented from unwinding from a reel rotor, and a release position, where the fishline is permitted to unwind from the reel rotor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a conventional fishing reel rotor is shown to include a main body 1 and a one-way brake assembly 2. The main body 1 includes a mounting member 101 adapted to be connected to a fishing rod (not shown), a rotary lever 102 disposed rotatably on the mounting member 101, a driving rod 103 journalled on the mounting member 101 and connected to the rotary lever 102 so as to be rotatable with the rotary lever 102, a movable shaft 104 disposed axially and movably within the driving rod 103, and a brake-controlling rod 105 journalled on the mounting member 101 and parallel to the movable shaft 104. The brake assembly 2 includes an annular bearing seat 201 mounted fixedly on an end face 106 of the main body 1 by screws, an outer brake ring 202 mounted fixedly within the bearing seat 201, a roller-positioning member 203 mounted rotatably within the outer brake ring 202, a plurality of rollers 204 disposed in the roller-positioning member 203, an inner brake tube 205 sleeved non-rotatably on the driving rod 103 and disposed within the bearing seat 201 and adjacent to the rollers 204, a plurality of torsion springs 206 disposed between the rollers 204 and the bearing seat 201, a driving ring 207 linked to the roller-positioning member 203 in the bearing seat 201 and connected operably to the brake-controlling rod 105, and a cover 208 that confines the outer brake ring 202, the rollers 204, the roller-positioning member 203, the inner brake tube 205, and the driving ring 207 within the bearing seat 201. The outer brake ring 202 has an inner surface formed with a plurality of grooves 209 that are arranged in a circumferential direction. Each of the grooves 209 has a shallow groove portion 209xe2x80x2 and a deep groove portion 209xe2x80x3.
When the brake-controlling rod 105 is manipulated, the driving ring 207 will bring the roller-positioning member 203 and the rollers 204 to rotate within the outer brake ring 202 so that the rollers 204 displace along the grooves 209 between the shallow and deep groove portions 209xe2x80x2, 209xe2x80x3. When the rollers 204 are located in the shallow groove portions 209xe2x80x2, the inner brake tube 205 and the driving rod 103 can rotate in the roller-positioning member 203 in a single direction so as to prevent unwinding of a fishline from the spool. When the rollers 204 are located in the deep groove portions 209xe2x80x3, the inner brake tube 205 and the driving rod 103 can rotate in the roller-positioning member 203 in two directions so as to permit winding and unwinding of the fishline with respect to the spool. The rollers 204 are biased by the torsion springs 206 into the shallow groove portions 209xe2x80x2.
However, the above-described fishing reel rotor suffers from the following drawbacks:
1. As a plurality of torsion springs 206 are required, and as the wire diameter of the torsion springs 206 is relatively small, assembly is not convenient.
2. Since the brake assembly 2 includes a relatively large number of components, and since the bearing seat 201 is fastened to the main body 1 by screws, a lot of assembly steps will be involved, and there may be cumulative tolerances of the components, so that the concentricity of the components cannot be preserved, thereby resulting in undesirable noise.
3. In addition, the screws may loosen after a period of use, and may thus affect the structural strength of the fishing reel rotor.
Therefore, the main object of the present invention is to provide a fishing reel rotor with a one-way brake assembly, which is relatively simple in construction, which can enhance structural strength, and which can preserve concentricity of the components.
Accordingly, a fishing reel rotor of the present invention is adapted to be connected removably to a fishing rod, and comprises:
a main body including
a mounting member adapted to be connected removably to the fishing rod,
a rotary lever disposed rotatably on the mounting member,
a hollow driving rod journalled on the mounting member and connected to the rotary lever, the driving rod being rotatable on the mounting member when the rotary lever rotates,
a movable shaft disposed axially and movably within the driving rod,
an annular bearing seat connected fixedly to the mounting member and disposed around the driving rod, and
a brake-controlling rod journalled on the mounting member and parallel to the driving rod, the brake-controlling rod being rotatable between a braking position and a release position;
a roller-positioning member having a ring plate that is mounted rotatably within the bearing seat and that is disposed around the driving rod, the ring plate having a side surface that is formed with a plurality of positioning blocks that project integrally and axially therefrom and that are arranged along a circle, each adjacent pair of the positioning blocks defining a roller-receiving space therebetween;
an outer brake ring mounted fixedly within the bearing seat and disposed around the positioning blocks of the roller-positioning member, the outer brake ring having an inner surface which is formed with a plurality of grooves that are arranged along a circumferential direction, each of the grooves having a shallow groove portion and a deep groove portion that is deeper than the shallow groove portion;
a plurality of rollers disposed respectively and movably within the roller-receiving spaces in the roller-positioning member;
an inner brake tube sleeved non-rotatably on the driving rod so as to rotate synchronously therewith, the inner brake tube being disposed within the roller-positioning member and having an outer surface that is adjacent to the rollers;
an annular driving ring disposed rotatably around the driving rod and within the bearing seat and connected non-rotatably to the roller-positioning member, the driving ring being connected operably to the brake-controlling rod and rotatable between a first position, where the brake-controlling rod is disposed at the release position and where the rollers are located within the deep groove portions of the grooves so as to permit bi-directional rotation of the driving rod and the inner brake tube within the roller-positioning member, and a second position, where the brake-controlling rod is disposed at the braking position and where the rollers are located within the shallow groove portions of the grooves, thereby permitting unidirectional rotation of the driving rod and the inner brake tube within the roller-positioning member;
an annular cover disposed around the driving rod and connected fixedly to the bearing seat so as to confine the roller-positioning member, the outer brake ring, the rollers, the inner brake tube, and the driving ring within the bearing seat; and
a coiled tension spring having two ends that are fastened respectively to the cover and the driving ring, the tension spring being stretched when the driving ring is disposed at the first position so as to create a restoration force for biasing the driving ring to the second position.
Because only one spring, i.e., the tension spring, is incorporated in the fishing reel rotor, the structure of the fishing reel rotor is relatively simple.
Preferably, the bearing seat is formed integrally with the mounting member to enhance structural strength of the fishing reel rotor and to preserve concentricity of the components.